In 1975 Michelle moved to Louisiana, and also began her affiliation and passion with all things equine. Over the ensuing years she has been involved in almost all aspects of the equine industry: showing, training, teaching, judging, TD, ownership, IHSA, USPC, breeding, therapeutic riding, Special Olympics, show and clinic production, as well as equine research, not just in La but all across the nation.

Michelle and her horses (and also her students) have successfully competed in H/J, equitation, dressage, eventing, competitive trail, and even extreme cowboy races!  She has also participated in countless breed parades and side saddle demonstrations with her rare breed Cleveland Bay horses.

 

Michelle has served on the board of numerous equestrian organizations both statewide and nationwide, and holds multiple certifications in the industry, including holding the only side saddle instruction certification/judge's card in the state and currently serves on the Alumni Board for the Louisiana Scholars' College.

Robbin Rosalis has lived in northeast Louisiana all her life. She graduated from ULM with a Master's  Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. Robbin worked for the Louisiana Department of Children & Family Services for thirty years before retiring. 

Her equestrian endeavors have included showing in breed shows and open shows, Western and English with a little hunt jump. Her registered stock has included Quarter, Paints, Morgans, Haflinger, and Racking with an assortment of amazing grade horses.   

Currently, she is a dedicated pleasure rider who loves trails. When she is not riding she enjoys making wheel-thrown pottery, dog rescue, gardening, and writing. Her genre is fantasy fiction, and her books are available on Amazon. 

(Bio above)

(Bio above)

Perry retired 8 years ago as Principal of Opelousas. He served 14 years in that position and was in education for 38 years. Perry has always had a love for horses but did not have one until the age of 62. His then 2 year old grand daughter developed the same love as him so he bought his first horse. Perry enrolled in the Master Horseman Program and gained valuable skills of which he passed on to his 2 grand daughters and now 8 year old grand son. His first experience was in trail where he learned to ride. As his grand children became of age they started participating in 4-H as he conducts horse clinics for the St. Landry Parish 4-H Tri Parish Horse Program along with several other Master Horseman. Perry never dreamed that his involvement with horses would be at this level. He hopes to continue his education and teaching horsemanship for years to come. 

Clint Depew is one of the founding members of the LEC. He is a retired professor from the LSU Animal science Department. He served as the Horse Specialist  until his retirement. He has conducted horse clinics and taught horsemanship for 40 years.

​LEC Board Member, 2024 James “Barry” Daigle has lived and worked in the Lafayette area for 50 years. Recently, He purchased his retirement home on the Kisatchie National Forest near Forest Hill, Louisiana to pursue his life long passion of riding horses. He has ownedhorses for approximately 26 years and currently owns 3 horses with his wife, Jan. He attended USL and has a bachelors degree in Computer Science. He also servedinthe U.S. Army for 2 years at Fort Polk and Fort Hood. He was employed by theCityof Lafayette, then Lafayette Consolidated Government for 25 years. He left as Manager of Information Services and Technology. After leaving, he then joinedLSUHealth Sciences Center and worked at University Medical Center as IT Director. Heis now retired. Notably, Barry served on the Board of Directors for Maple federal credit union, including terms as President and Vice President, for 28 years until heresigned in 2018. He looks forward to working with LEC as your new board member.

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Edwin “Happy” Broussard, better known as Happy, comes from a ranching and farming background and has personally owned ranches and farms in Louisiana, Mississippi, Colorado and Texas. He is the secretary treasurer of a farming corporation that was started in 1890 by his grandfather, George P. Broussard, Sr. Inc. The corporation has rice, sugar cane, crawfish and timber land. He has had experience in dealing with oil, gas and uranium leases. He is a past president of the Iberia St. Mary Cattleman’s Association and a past president of the Iberia Right to Life Organization. Originally from southern Louisiana’s Gulf Coast (Cajun Country), Happy attended Louisiana State University and University of Southwestern Louisiana. He played on the
LSU Rugby Team and still holds an intramural track and field record at LSU in an event no longer run, the 100 yard dash.
He managed a highly successful insurance agency for many years prior to his career in real estate, and was a licensed broker in Colorado, Texas and Louisiana specializing in farms and ranches. Happy also served on the board of directors of the oldest bank in Louisiana at the time for a number of years. Happy holds four designations in the real estate industry. He has an ALC designation (Accredited Land Consultant). The ALC designation is the most prestigious REALTOR® designation that can be earned in the farm, ranch and land real estate industry. He also has an ABR designation (Accredited Buyer Representative), a CNE designation (Certified Negotiation Expert) and a GRI designation (Graduate Realtor® Institute).

Adam Thibodeaux was involved with horses while he was in school. He resumed his equine
activities when his daughter joined 4-H several years ago.

 

He enjoys volunteering with youth
through the Master Horsemen Program as well as assisting with 4-H clinics, camps, and shows.
He is a lifelong resident in Lafayette Parish.

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